How would you best articulate feeling and dealing with 'Gamer Guilt'?

[Lenny Solidus]

And what actions do you take to directly counter it?

I've been feeling this a lot lately, that ever mounting gnawing feeling that I'm playing games too much recently to avoid IRL factors, to escape for as many hours as I possibly can at any given opportunity and to just enjoy gaming in those very carefully allocated gaming sessions. I've been playing far too much Battlefield you see, now after reaching an S rank that gave me equipment that allowed me to adequately feel that gaming rush I missed so much I play a session I come off, and I'm back on once again within ten minutes thirsty for more. Yes ok I will still have those moments where I shout at my team for being a complete bunch of incompetent cunts while I feel I'm doing all the work (this in itself is highly debatable, but I go with it anyway because main character syndrome) or swear that the dude sat on a hill who just head shotted me through solid brick right after I spotted him for my team is a damn dirty cheater resulting in my daughter hearing me yell 'cheating fuck!!' behind a firmly closed door. Sorry about that, expect more within minutes.

Behind all of this insanity however is that creeping why am I feeling this when I'm just enjoying my favourite hobby that is the unreserved sense of abject fucking gamer guilt perched heavily upon my shoulder. Do I not deserve this downtime? What am I doing wrong here, exactly? What is this guilt shit - why do I keep obsessively looking at my hours played counter and feeling worse about it every single time creeping up 4-5 hours in a single evening, why do I wish to hide it from the world and scrub it from my mind but somehow cannot?

I'm just playing games here. I like playing games. Gaming completes me.

It's not like I'm back in my days of playing WoW when lengthy hours based sessions were the so very often the done thing and felt completely normalised for the time - until I realised I was horribly addicted /gquit and never went back. I like possibly many of you knew many who committed far worse 'crimes'.

So to you, I ask, yes you - how exactly would you put into words what it is we are dealing with here and more importantly how in 50,000 words or fewer do you specifically deal or learned to deal with this nagging albatross circling about your head while gaming? It will be interesting to hear any takes on this, large or small.

[Sly Boots]

First thing I would say is that given some of the details you've shared in recent weeks in your blog thread, you're absolutely entitled to some free leisure time to spend with your hobby, and the escapism it offers, and shouldn't feel guilty about that.

For me, my biggest issue is using gaming as a work avoidance measure. I don't particularly enjoy my job but appreciate that it allows me to work from home and be largely my own boss, but I'm at the point where I struggle to get into it, turn to gaming as a means of putting it off, then get to a point where I'm panicking I'm so behind and then use gaming as escapism to try to ignore the problem

I'm yet to deal with it beyond having to almost physically restrain myself to actually get on with the work eventually, which is my life currently.

What's made it better in one way and worse is another is starting my Youtube channel. It's better because I'm able to channel that hobby into something that is actually contributing, albeit in currently a quite minor way, to the household, and my wife likes that I'm earning a little bit through a side hustle that is gradually growing. And, honestly, I'd say 95% of my gaming now is put towards the channel, very little is just for myself. The downside is that the part of my brain that likes to avoid my job likes to tell me that I'm not bunking off, I'm working so that's fine actually, and you can ignore those pesky deadlines

[Wrathbone]

I wouldn’t say I feel gaming guilt, but then being single and without kids means I’m not gaming at the possible expense of anyone else. If I’m gaming when I know there are things that need doing (e.g. household chores), it’s not so much guilt as the knowledge that those things will still need doing once I’ve stopped gaming. That would be true if I was watching a film or reading, though.

I think for guilt to be a factor, you have to believe that someone whose opinion you value disapproves in some way.

[Raid]

I actually have exactly the opposite problem; I feel guilty that I don't spend enough time playing the games I was really excited for.

This year I've been meaning to play:
-Baldurs Gate 3
-Cyberpunk
-Tears of the Kingdom
-Red Dead Redemption 2
...and I've barely touched any of them. They're all really good, I enjoy them all, but I just can't seem to commit to playing single-player games anymore, because the multiplayer stuff I play with some of you fine folk takes precedence. That and I've been trying to fill my time with hobbies because my social life is basically non-existent, and it's better than vegging in front of a TV. This past fortnight I've decided to get into wargaming! Now I have even less time because I'm building tiny Battle Droids and figuring out how to sculpt cliffs out of foam and wondering just what sort of planetary biome I want to design to fit it all into.

[Maturin]

The thing with online gaming is you do need to invest a chunk of time into them each week to get the most out of them, I remember that vividly from my Countrstrike: Source days. You can't just dedicate an hour to them 3 or 4 times a week I found.

I think Dave, it's obvious you don't need to justify your gaming/home life balance with everything you've done and gone through in recent times. Modern adult life is harsh and if you've found a past-time which helps you function and gives you a release - that's probably a good thing rather than a bad thing.

[Rusty]

I was discussing this very topic with a friend after a movie and curry night. He asked why I hadn't moved in with my girlfriend yet (we've been together 11 years).
I just know my gaming habit will kill the relationship. I practically live with her anyway but don't have my gaming rig there so will spend time watching TV or just being together.

I know, deep down, that gaming at the time was the cause of my marriage breakup and with the mother of my son (different people, different times ).

I really need limits.
.
.
<stands up>
My name is Rusty.
I'm a gaming addict.
<sits back down>
.
.
And fuck if I'm ever going to stop